Mark Michaels

MARK MICHAELS has over 25 years of experience as a professional guitarist and bassist covering areas including pop, rock, blues, folk, jazz, and country. He was instrumental in developing online instruction for guitar and piano and has written numerous music instruction publications, including internationally distributed books on guitar, bass, percussion, and arranging, which have been translated into German and Japanese. He began his musical career in Queens, New York, studying violin, accordion and guitar beginning at about age eight, starting to “gig” at about age fourteen. Studying with Nat Epstein and jazz greats Barry Galbraith and John Abercrombie, he later embarked upon a musical career. He currently plays with his own jazz trio as well as performing in a jazz duo with his daughter, Leah, on bass. Mark has been featured in Newsday, Billboard, The Hartford Courant and Variety, and has accompanied many major artists, including Madonna, Lou Christie, blues great Freddie King, The Shangri-Las, Frankie Avalon, Johnny Ray, Bobby Rydell, Englebert Humperdinck and James Darren. He produced and composed the 1997 #12 hit dance single “Umbrella Man”, and has played guitar on hundreds of recordings. In the 1980’s, Mark formed a mail-order company to distribute his books and tapes. He also created and produced music instruction videos for HiBeam Productions. Mark’s publications include The Billboard Book of Rock Arranging, Rock Riffs for Guitar, Blues Riffs for Guitar, Heavy Metal Riffs for Guitar, Rockabilly Riffs for Guitar, New Wave Riffs for Guitar, Original Jeff Beck, Teach Yourself Rhythm Guitar, Rock Picture Chords and the videos Teach Yourself Lead Guitar and Teach Yourself Rock Bass. From 1984 to 1986 he was the Program Director at the National Guitar Summer Workshop at the South Kent School in Kent, CT, where Mark also lectured on the business of music. Mark was also Contributing Editor of The Music Paper and Contributing Editor of Words and Music magazine. Mark taught at the American Institute of Guitar in Manhattan from 1986 until its demise in 2007, when he founded the New York Ukulele School. He is also involved in composing and producing music for film and video. His music has most recently been featured in the independent film “Tied Up.” Billboard magazine has called his musical abilities “sharp…concise…a mastermind.” He was educated at Queens College (B.A., 1971) and Eastern Washington University (M.S., 1973). Mark lives in Long Beach, NY with his wife and daughter. His hobbies include 45 rpm record collecting, bicycling, tennis and golf. To hear samples of some of his music, please visit www.newyorkukuleleschool.com or http://www.itsaboutmusic.com/markmichaels.html